Contracts and default
Annual contract, tuition increases, collection and legal limits. Details on the tuition default page.
Sector advisory · education
Legal advisory for schools: contracts, families, students, teachers and education authorities
A school answers to the family as a supplier, to the student as a guardian, to the teacher as an employer and to the education system as an authorized institution. Each relationship has its own rules and a frequent point of failure.
Straight answer: the legal fronts of a school
Six fronts concentrate the problems: the contract with families and tuition default, under Law 9,870/1999 and the Consumer Code; consumer agency complaints and consumer suits; protection of students' data, who are children and adolescents; civil liability for accidents, bullying and supervision failures; regulation, with authorization, supervision and sanctions by the education system; and labor relations with teachers and staff, including planning hours, vacations and end-of-year dismissals.
This page is for sponsoring entities, principals and coordinators of Brazilian early childhood, primary and secondary schools, free courses, language schools and private higher education institutions. We serve companies throughout the State of São Paulo, Brazil, with meetings at our Paulista or Tatuapé offices or by video call, and act before the São Paulo courts (TJSP), the labor courts (TRT-2, TRT-15), the federal court (TRF-3) and administrative bodies.
Work fronts in advisory for schools
Consumer agency and consumers
Responding to complaints, consumer agency hearings and defense in consumer suits. Details on the dedicated page.
Data protection and students' data
Processing children's data, image use, educational platforms and incident response. Details on the data protection page.
Civil liability
Accidents, bullying, students leaving unsupervised and the duty of supervision. Details on the civil liability page.
Regulation
Course authorization, supervision by the Education Department and councils, sanctions and compliance. Details on the dedicated page.
Labor
Teachers, planning hours, fixed-term contracts, collective vacations and dismissals. Details on the school labor page.
Where risk usually arises
Outdated contract
Contracts copied from previous years, without adequate data, image and collection clauses, leave the school without a basis to act.
Unrecorded incidents
Accidents and conflicts between students without a written record and immediate communication to the family become compensation suits with evidence only from the other side.
Unplanned teacher dismissals
Mass dismissals at the end of the school year, without observing contracts and the collective agreement, generate concentrated liabilities.
How the advisory works
1. Diagnosis
Map of contracts, procedures, incidents and the institution's liabilities.
2. Structuring
Review of the contract, bylaws, data policies and incident protocols, with staff training.
3. Litigation
Defense and negotiation before the consumer agency, in family suits, labor claims and regulatory proceedings.
Record every student incident in a logbook or system, with date, people involved, measures taken and communication to the family. That record is the main evidence in disputes over the duty of supervision.
Frequently asked questions from schools
Can a school raise tuition above inflation?
Yes, provided the increase is justified by a cost spreadsheet and disclosed in advance, under Law 9,870/1999. The increase must be annual and tied to the new contract.
Is a school liable for bullying between students?
It may be, if it is shown that it knew or should have known and did not act. Prevention protocols and records of the measures taken are the main defense.
Can a teacher be hired on a fixed-term contract?
In situations provided for by law and the collective agreement, such as substitution or a specific project. Generic use of temporary contracts for the school year is usually challenged.
Official references and related pages
Brazilian rules of reference for educational institutions. Law 9,870/1999, the education system's rules and the collective agreement complete the picture.
Want to organize your school's legal affairs?
Describe the institution and the points of concern through the secure channel. The screening identifies the priority fronts.